


Adam and his Boys

by Flooo



Category: The Stranger (UK TV 2020)
Genre: Brothers, Comfort, Family Feels, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hugs, Mostly TV canon, Spoilers, The Boys Are Sweethearts, adam is a great dad, but aiming for more fluff than angst, might include some book canon if it fits, my apologies if it becomes too corny
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:00:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24555070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flooo/pseuds/Flooo
Summary: Series of one-shots with some moments between Adam, Thomas and Ryan. Because neither the book nor the Netflix series have had enough of these three and their relationship. Some are missing scenes that either must or could have happened at some point during the show, others are rewrites of existing scenes.
Relationships: Adam Price & Ryan Price, Adam Price & Thomas Price, Adam Price & Thomas Price & Ryan Price, Adam Price/Corinne Price, Thomas Price & Ryan Price, Thomas Price & Ryan Price & Corinne Price
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The show gives us a detailed view of Adam's and Corinne's reaction to the miscarriage, but none of Thomas and Ryan, although they were old enough to be aware of what happened. Here's how they could have reacted.

"I love you so much", Corinne said, leaning against Adam's chest. He gave her a careful kiss on the hair: "I love you too", he whispered. Unwillingly, he remembered the doubts he had just a few weeks ago. When he started to wonder what was keeping him here. Even almost came to the conclusion that it were only Thomas and Ryan he couldn't leave, not his wife. But right here, right now, he was certain: Corinne was the woman he loved, the woman he wanted to grow old with, the women he would do anything to keep happy and safe. They stayed in that hugging position for a while, Corinne's sobs got quieter. Suddenly, they heard the front door opening and the voice of their youngest: "Mum? Dad? Where are you?" Corinne stirred: "It's the boys", she whispered, wiping her tears away with her sleeve, "we should tell them". Adam stopped her: "No, I will talk to them. You stay here and rest" For a moment, she looked as if she wanted to protest, but she didn't and dropped on the bed instead. Adam gave her a last kiss on the cheek and headed downstairs.

Not a second too early, as he met Ryan on top of the stairs, apparently looking for his parents. His face lit up when he saw his father: "Dad! You won't believe this! I've got an A on...", he stopped and stared at Adam "what's wrong?", he questioned, the excitement in his eyes now replaced by fear. Of course, Ryan would notice that something was off, no matter how hard Adam tried to look normal. His sweet, sensitive, little boy. Before he could have answered, he heard Thomas's voice from downstairs: "Ryan! Come back here, you don't know what they are doing up there!" "Nothing inappropriate, thank you very much!", Adam called back, which earned him a chuckle from Thomas. Ryan was still waiting for an answer, so Adam grasped his hand and said: "Come, I'll talk to you guys downstairs". Adam could feel Ryan's curious and concerned eyes on him, but he ignored it for the moment. Downstairs, they were greeted by Thomas who was hanging Ryan's coat up. The younger one had forgotten to do that again. His question, on the other hand, was not forgotten. As soon as Ryan's foot had left the last step, he said: "Okay, we're downstairs, tell us what's the matter!" Now Thomas looked concerned as well: "Something's the matter?", he asked, just then he seemed to realize that his mother was not coming down too, so he added: "Is Mum ill?" Adam sighed: "No...well, at least not physically. She is rather...sad, you could say." It didn't need his sons' faces to tell Adam what a maddingly unhelpful explanation that was. He shook his head and tried again: "Let's have a seat, alright? I'll explain it to you" He went into the living room and sat himself down. The boys exchanged a look and followed, but they kept standing.

While Adam was still searching for the right words in his head, Thomas crossed his arms and said: "Dad? What happened? What's wrong with Mum?" "Yeah, why is she sad? So sad she doesn't want to see us?", added his brother in a high-pitched voice that indicated he was about to cry or panic or both. Adam held up his hands as if he was trying to calm a frightened animal down: "Don't worry boys, she will be okay". He paused for a few seconds and saw some relief in his sons' eyes, then he took a deep breath and continued: "Mum went to the doctor's today after she had bad cramps. And the doctor told her that…", he paused again, wondering again what could be the right way to tell his sons the sad news, then decided to use similar words Corinne had used on him: "He told her that the baby is gone. She, I mean, we lost it". Had he held himself together the whole time since he knew, now that he actually spoke out loud what had happened, he felt tears filling his eyes. He let them run down his cheeks. What the hell, he had lost that baby as much as Corinne. Who said he wasn't allowed to mourn? 

The boys were silent, Adam supposed out of shock. They had not been looking forward to having a baby in the house as much as their parents had, but they were fourteen and ten years old, therefore old enough to know what a miscarriage was and how serious it was. Suddenly, Ryan went to his father, crawled on his lap and wrapped his arms around him. Adam returned the hug and buried his nose in his son's hair for a while. He knew Ryan wasn't doing this so much to be consoled himself, but rather in a desperate effort to console his dad. That sweet boy. "Dad? You think it is okay when I go and see how Mum's doing?", asked Thomas after some moments. That other sweet boy. Adam hesitated, but decided it should be alright, now that Thomas knew what was wrong: "That's kind of you, go try, but she might not want to see you right now". "Don't worry, I got this", answered his older son and went upstairs. Adam was sure that he was right. While Ryan was astonishing when it came to sensing other people's (hidden) feelings, Thomas was a master in finding the correct words to deal with them. 

Again a few moments passed, then Ryan lifted his head: "Daddy?", he said carefully "Is it okay that I'm hungry?" Adam was a little embarrassed that his son felt the need to ask that question (although it was considerate of him) and that he had not thought about preparing any food until now. "Of course it is, honey, would you like to help me cook something?" "Can we cook something that will make Mummy happy?", Ryan asked. Awww. Adam smiled: "What do you think will make her happy?" "Spaghetti!", declared the Boy with a conviction that was hard to contradict. His dad chuckled "Okay, then let's make her some, shall we?" "And for us too!", added the ten-year-old as he followed his father into the kitchen. 

Adam turned off the cooker and Ryan was setting the table when Corinne and Thomas entered the room. Thomas had an arm wrapped around his mother's shoulder and Corinne's eyes were still a bit red. But she smiled: "Oh, have you two prepared dinner?" Adam kissed her: "All Ryan's idea", he answered. Ryan stood by the table and smiled shyly. "Are you feeling better now?", he asked looking at his mother in a hopeful manner. Adam knew that his youngest was dying to run to her and hug her, but he didn't dare to just yet. Luckily, Corinne was exactly as sensitive as her son was and understood his problem without any words. Gently, she pulled away from Thomas and Adam to pull Ryan into her arms. "Yes, I'm feeling better, baby, thank you", she murmured. Ryan made a face: "I'll be your baby forever now, will I?" Thomas and Adam exchanged an amused glance, they both remembered Ryan's excitement about not being the little one in the family anymore, a position he had never been fond of. Adam laid an arm around Thomas: "Thank you for looking after her", he whispered. Thomas nodded: "Always", he whispered back and leaned his head against his father's shoulder. Adam gave him a soft kiss on the head. A warm rush of fondness went through him as he looked at his little family. Everything was going to be okay, he was sure, as long as he had his three most important people in the world.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In Episode 2, Adam buys a DNA testing kit to find out whether the boys are his, but decides against using it and throws it in the dustbin. Here's a little "what if" scene in which Thomas finds it and confronts his father about it.

Adam was about to pour himself another drink when he heard his oldest son's voice: "Dad? Can we talk?" He turned around, the glass in his hand, and tried to smile: "Sure, anything" Thomas looked at him, hesitated, nervously played with his hands. Adam noticed the familiar gesture; he did the same "hand-thing" (as Corinne used to call it) whenever he was nervous. Ignoring his rising anxiety about what exactly could have happened that Thomas was unsure to talk to him, he tried to sound reassuring and said: "Go on, you can tell me anything". The teen nodded, then inhaled, pulled something out of his pocket and showed it to his father: "I found this" Adam starred at the thing in Thomases hand. After a second, he recognized it. It was the DNA testing kit he had bought and then thrown away. That was the point, he had thrown it away. Mostly to avoid having this exact conversation...  
"Where did you find it?" "Doesn't matter", there was an unusual sharpness in his usual gentle son "It matters why you owned such a thing in the first place!" Adam was about to tell him he shouldn't pretend his father owned drugs or a bomb, but he didn't. This seemed to be a big deal to Thomas. And if he was quite honest, he understood. No kid or teen wanted to learn that his parent might not be his actual parent. "Is Ryan asleep?", he asked, because it was still a difference to discuss such a topic with your sixteen-year-old or your twelve-year-old. But apparently, Thomas agreed on that anyway: "Yeah, I checked on him, he doesn't need to worry about this." "Good", Adam answered and continued: "You see, I threw that thing away. I never used it" Thomas scoffed: "So it is like you never bought it? Like you never doubted we were your children?" Adam saw tears in his son's eyes. That poor boy. Adam felt horrible now. Carefully, he wrapped an arm around his son. Thomas let him and wrapped his arms around Adam and although he was only a head shorter than his father now, it was to Adam as if he was holding his frightened five-year-old son after he had a nightmare. "There's really nothing you need to worry about. I think all fathers have those doubts once in a while..." Thomas interrupted him: "But only if they mistrust their wives. Don't you trust Mum anymore?" "I do trust her, or at least I want to", Adam sighed, okay then, seemed like he had to tell Thomas at least part of the truth. Or else, the boy would never understand. "Do you remember when your Mum was pregnant two years ago?" "You mean when she suffered a miscarriage? What about it?" "Well, I recently found out...I mean, she admitted that that pregnancy was fake." That startled Thomas: "Fake? But why would she do that? Why would anyone fake a pregnancy? I can't be actually enjoyable!" Adam chuckled at that and was glad his son didn't ask further under which circumstances Corinne had admitted, then he turned serious again: "I don't know. Corinne promised to talk another time but that hasn't happened yet. Anyway, in the midst of that confession, I started to fear what she might have lied about either." Adam didn't need to go ahead, Thomas understood: "I see, but do you sincerely think Mum would do that? Cheat on you and have another man's baby without telling either of you?" There was something in the way Thomas said that, making the accuse sound like the craziest idea on earth. And Adam was glad to believe it was, but after everything that had occurred? He didn't know what Corinne was capable of.  
"My doubts were never that much about you, though. You look so much like me, you cannot possibly be someone else's son. But Ryan...he looks nothing like me" Thomas raised an eyebrow: "Yeah, he looks like Mum, since when is that a problem? I always thought that's exactly why you have a soft spot for him." That surprised Adam, did Thomas truly think Ryan was his father's favourite? "I love you both the same!" "I know, but you love -or at least used to love- seeing so much of Mum in Ryan. You can't argue that" The teen was right, Adam admitted. Sighing, he said: "I guess that's why I threw the test away again. I figured it wouldn't matter anyway, even if you weren't my biological children, I'd still love you two so damn much" "Language", smiled Thomas, but there was still a concerned glance in his eyes. "Are you sure it wouldn't matter?", he began, "I mean, imagine, another man stood at our door and claimed that Ryan was his child, what would you do?" "Tell him he'll have to rip Ryan out of my cold, dead hands if he wants him!", answered Adam without any hesitation or thought to how weird that question was. Apparently, that soothed Thomas, he grinned: "There you go, that's what I wanted to hear!" The teen gave his father a goodnight kiss on the cheek and headed upstairs. "Night, mate", answered Adam smiling. As much as he had wanted to avoid that talk, now he was glad it had happened because it had proven himself how much he didn't care about DNA. Those boys were his and nobody would ever take them away from him. Only over his dead body.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adam finally apologizes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Attention: book canon! This is actually a missing scene from the book, but it doesn't contradict the show's canon so I decided to post it here anyway.   
> In the book, there's a scene where Adam comes home all fed up because he still has no word from Corinne and little to no clue where she could be. The minute he opens the door, Ryan asks him where his Mum is and gets upset that she isn't home yet because he can't find his sports uniform and Mum always finds stuff but Dad doesn't. Long story short, the scene ends with Adam snapping at Ryan and poor Ryan bursting into tears and locking himself in his room for the rest of the evening.  
> Unfortunately, the book does a time-jump here to a few days later where everything is like this argument never happened. I always thought that it doesn't fit Ryan and Adam equally to just go ahead without any reconciliation. So here's my version of one.

It was almost midnight when Adam decided to call it a day and closed his laptop. As he walked up the stairs, he heard a strange noise. Getting closer, he realized that it was quiet sobbing coming from Ryan's room. The sobs shattered Adam's heart into pieces. His poor little boy had been crying for hours and only because he had to lose his temper. Time to finally make things up to him, he had been shoving that away and prioritized his search for Corinne long enough. No child should cry itself to sleep, especially none of his. Carefully, Adam opened the door. "Ryan?", he said as if he was just checking on him. The sobbing stopped and turned into a soft sniffling. "I know you're still awake, mate" " 'm sorry", whispered Ryan. What the hell was he apologizing for? Staying up past his bedtime? "There's nothing you need to be sorry for", Adam said as he sat down on the bed, "it's me who has to apologize. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that." Ryan finally turned around to look at him: "But it's my fault, I annoyed you" "No, or maybe yes, you did, but my reaction was completely uncalled for. I'm your father, it should be safe for you to come to me with all your problems, as trivial as they might seem to me and I should have never yelled at you for doing so. I'm extremely sorry, can you forgive me?" A tiny smile cornered the boy's lips: "Yeah, I forgive you". Adam smiled relieved and opened his arms: "Come here" Ryan practically flung himself at his father, Adam almost fell off the bed. As Adam was holding his youngest son, gently stroking his ginger hair and noticing how his face slowly turned from red and swollen to its normal pale colour again, he realized how small he still was. Of course, everyone looked small and fragile after they had just cried their heart out, but Ryan was in fact just a little boy. Too little for all of this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Turned out extremely short, sorry, but hey, chapters in the actual book tend to be 3 pages long, so...


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which Thomas finds Ryan over his homework in the middle of the night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I'm a sucker for cute brother moments, here's some Thomas and Ryan Fluff. 
> 
> Loosely based on a moment in episode 6, in which the Prices come home late and Adam sends Ryan straight to bed. The boy protests, saying he hasn't done his homework yet and Adam promises to write him notes. Ryan still doesn't look very happy and I suddenly had this idea of him doing homework at night anyway...a thing I certainly also did once or twice during my time in school

Ryan closed his math book, put it into his school bag and pulled out his history textbook instead. A glance to the clock told him that it was half three, so he had about three hours to finish his homework. Yawning, he considered leaving the other subjects be and just taking Dad's note. But somehow how he didn't. Sleeping at school was at least considered as being sick and you were just sent home. But not doing your homework? There was no excuse for that, Daddy's excuse or not. "Shouldn't you be asleep?" Ryan flinched so hard he fell off his chair. Sitting on his aching behind he realized it was Thomas and not his father. "You scumbag!", scoffed Ryan, "you scared me!" Thomas grinned: "Sorry mate. But if you had been in bed like you should be, I wouldn't have seen your light under the door" The younger one returned to his chair: "Leave me alone", he grumbled "I'm doing homework" Thomas raised an eyebrow and looked stunningly like his father for a second: "I thought Dad wanted to leave you a note" "He did. But my teachers won't be happy with that, so I'm doing them anyway" "Ryan, your teachers won't be happier if you fall asleep in class", Thomas reasoned "Go to bed" Ryan rolled his eyes: "Go away, you're not Dad!" "Maybe not, but I could wake him up and tell him you're still awake", the older one threatened. "You wouldn't dare!" "Sure I would...Dad? Da.." Before he could have called a second time, Ryan had jumped up and covered his mouth, his earlier tiredness forgotten "Shut up!", he hissed "Dad would kill me, you know that!" Gently, Thomas lowered his brother's hand from his mouth and sighed: "Rye, listen, Dad might be right this time; getting enough sleep is important. More important than homework, believe me." "Since when are you that caring?" "Since you were born. Now go to sleep" "You won't leave until I do, will you?" "Absolutely not", Thomas crossed his arms as if to underline his statement. The younger one realized the fight was lost, he closed his book, threw it into his school bag and went back to bed. "You'll explain this to my teachers", he muffled. Thomas smiled: "I'll even explain to the headteacher if I must", he promised. Ryan smiled back: "Thank you...Goodnight Tommy" "Night, Rye" Thomas watched as his younger brother settled down and closed his eyes. He remained standing in the threshold until he was sure his brother was asleep, then he returned to his own bedroom to listen to his own advice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, for some reason I have this headcanon that Ryan's nickname is "Rye" and Thomases is "Tommy"
> 
> Turned out really short again, sorry...I'll try to get the next chapter a bit longer again

**Author's Note:**

> I do love the characters a lot, but they are unfortunately still Corinne's (I mean, Harlan Coben's) boys, not mine. I try to write them as close to how they were portrayed as possible, but I am aware my interpretation on how they would react in certain situations might differ from others', might even differ from Harlan's or the cast's opinions. Feel free to discuss that in the comments, but please stay polite and tolerant, thank you.


End file.
